History of Chengdu

With it's long history of over 2,300 years, Chengdu was proclaimed one of the 24 cultural and historical cities by the State Council at the first batch.
Early in the 4th century BC, Kaiming IX, king of ancient Shu, moved the capital from ?°Guangdu Fanxiang?± (now called Shuangliu) to Chengdu. "A town was built in this area in the first year and the capital in the second year?±, so the ancestor name the city as Chengdu, which means ?°became a capital?±in Chinese.
In 311 B.C, people of Qin Dynasty (221 BC-208 BC) built a protective wall around Chengdu city according to the construction standard practiced in Xianyang, capital of Qin Dynasty. Thus, the wall was erected with a height of 3.5 meters and a perimeter of 6 kilometers, marking the beginning of Chengdu City.
The Dujiangyan Irrigation System was constructed under the lead of Li Bing, prefect of Shu Prefecture. The Dujiangyan brings the vast Chengdu Plain under irrigation and protects it against droughts and floods for over 2000 years. Chengdu plain was turned into the Land of Abundance with temperate climate and fertile soil.
In Western Han Dynasty (206 BC- AD 23), brocades produced in Chengdu enjoyed good popularity in China. The government assigned Jinguan (an official in charge of brocade production) to administrate the brocade production in Chengdu and the Jinguan City was constructed. So Chengdu is also called Jinguan City or ?°Brocade City?±.
In the Five Kingdoms Period (907-960), Mengchang, king of the Latter Shu Kingdom, decreed to plant hibiscuses on the protective wall of the city, so Chengdu is also called the City of Hibiscus.
Through the history, Chengdu was a city densely covered by rivers and dotted with bridges, while trees grew in profusion and flowers bloomed all year around. No wonder that a traveler from France in the 19th century praised Chengdu as Oriental Paris. Over 2,000 years, Chengdu has remained a city of military importance in Southwest China on politics, economy and military affairs. Gongsun Shu, king of Western Han Dynasty, Liu Bei, emperor of the Three Kingdoms and Meng Zhixiang, King of the Latter Shu Kingdom all founded their capital in Chengdu. Later in the Yuan Dynasty (1279-1368), the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), it remained the location of government for Sichuan province. Early in Ming Dynasty (1912-1949), it was the capital city of Sichuan province. On December 27, 1949, Chengdu was liberated and chosen as the location for the administration office for Sichuan province. Since 1952, when Sichuan resumed its status as an administrative province, Chengdu became capital.
Chengdu has also been a city with prosperous industry and booming business activities. In the Qin Dynasty (221 BC-206 BC) and the Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD220), it was a well-known business center. In the Han Dynasty, it was one of the five best cities in China, the other four cities being Luoyang, Handan, Linzi and Wan. It ranked second, next only to Yangzhou in the Tang Dynasty (618-907), in the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127), next only to the capital city, Bianjing. Early in Tang Dynasty and Song Dynasty, the commerce and trade in Chengdu had outgrown the traditional family workshops, gradually developing into a modern city of sophistication. Each month was devoted to different fair: January for lamps, February flowers, March silkworms, April embroideries, May fans, June incense, July jewel wares, August sweet-scented osmanthus trees, September wines, October plum trees, and December peach wood charms. Besides, in the downtown areas, the markets for after-supper shopping began to flourish. Even to this day, names of some old streets testify to that history, including names like Yanshi Street (street for salt trade), location of city council, and business Street, location of branch office of Communist Party of China in Sichuan. Paper money appeared and was first used in China, Chengdu being its birthplace. At that time, workshops for paper money making were located in Jingchong Temple to the north of Chengdu city (today known as Wan-fu Temple, Temple of Ten Thousand Buddhas). The paper money made here was the earliest paper money ever used, which played a significant role in promoting trade, financial transaction, and economic development.
Chengdu also has the longest history for gas exploration and utilization. Early in the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 23), natural gas was discovered and used in salt-refinery. Li Bing, Magistrate of Sichuan province then, built canals to lead rivers to flow before Chengdu city, greatly improving its transportation. Soon later, merchants set out from Chengdu to embark on the long journey for silk trade known as the Silk Road. Chengdu has been proud of its great contribution to the culture of China as well as the world.
With a long history, the education in Chengdu is well developed. Early in 141 B.C, Wen Weng built schools to promote education, which was the first attempt in China for public education. Till the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279), the school had grown into a college with an enrollment totaling 1,000 members. This may explain why Sichuan has been the birthplace of so many talents with the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 23) and the Eastern Han Dynasty (AD25-220 BC) as its prime time. Chengdu was a leading city in paper making in the Sui Dynasty (581-618 ) and in the Tang Dynasty (618-907) and he hemp paper made in Chengdu was officially prescribed for decree writing and the Central library of China at that time. Later, the wood block printing technology was another great contribution made by the Chinese people to the civilization of the whole world. Once again, Chengdu was among the first to introduce and adopt this technology. In the Song Dynasty (960 BC-1279 BC), Chengdu was one of the three printing centers, and its printing technology was honored as?° the most advanced in China.?±
Chengdu is also known for its handicrafts. From the Warring States (770 BC-476 BC) to the Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 220), lacquer wares enjoyed a high popularity abroad. Hometown of the famous Shu brocade, Chengdu has been an important city for brocade weaving and the silk culture in China. In the Han Dynasty (220 BC- AD 206) and the Jin Dynasty (265-420), the colored silk from Sichuan was extremely popular in China. For a long period of time between the Six Kingdms and the Tang Dynasty (618-907), most of the silks exported to the Middle Asia were made in Chengdu. In 1909, the Shu colored silk won the first prize in the Southeast Asian Fair. In the Han Dynasty, the hemp cloth was the first-grade cloth, finding a ready market in countries as far as Afghanistan (known then as Daxia).
In the Tang Dynasty and the Song Dynasty, Sichuan Opera, with a large variety, dwarfed all other operas in China. Musical instrument was also famed. With a long history in making musical instruments, a family known as Lei amazed the world with their masterpiece. Also, wall paintings in Daci Temple (Temple of Great Mercy) were honored as ?°the Best Wall Painting in China.?±
Tea cooking and tea culture originated in Sichuan, China . And Xinjin, a town of Chengdu, was the first to begin tea trade. Even in poetry, the earliest description about tea drinking was found in Chengdu. In the Tang Dynasty and the Song Dynasty, Chengdu remained an important base for tea production, and it was also an important center for tea trade, either for retailing or in wholesale. Since the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), teahouses here gradually developed their own unique style which could be found today. Besides, Chengdu has the largest number of teahouses in the world.
Chengdu has been an open place gathering talented minds. In the Han Dynasty when Fu, a genre of literary creation, was extremely popular, there were four acknowledged masters in composing Fu, two of which were people of Chengdu, namely, Sima Xiangru and Yang Xiong. Later in the Tang Dynasty, Huan Quan and his son, Huan Juchai, were master painters. In the Song Dynasty, among the prestigious historians are two Chengdu people, namely Fan Zhen and Fan Zuyu.
Moreover, Chengdu was also the love of many personages, such as Zhuge Liang, an outstanding statesman, and other poets including Li Bai, Du Fu, Cen Shen, Xue Tao, Wei Zhuang, Lu You and Fang Cheng. Understandably, it was believed that Sichuan was of irresistible attraction to poets. Many other figures spent their schooling years in Chengdu, among which were Zhu De and Chen Yi, the great proletarian revolutionists, Guo Moruo, Ba Jin, Li Jieren, and Li Yimang, writers of modern China, and Zhou Taixuan, the scientist.
The city has been characterized in cultural traits by non-exclusiveness, absorptiveness, enterprising and openness. The coming of Kai Ming people into Sichuan brought with themselves the Jing and Chu culture. Soon later, the unification of China by the Qin Kingdom introduced another new culture, added later by a new wave of immigration of merchants from all other six kingdoms, bringing in knowledge of business management and industry. On the other hand, Wen Weng, a great advocator and patron of education then, sent many of his students to the capital city for study. Later in the Sui Dynasty, Yang Xiou, when designated to be governor of Sichuan, brought with him a group of master monks from China, thus making Sichuan an important center for Buddhist studies. Emperor Xuan Zhong and Emperor Xi Zhong of the Tang Dynasty made two imperial visits to Sichuan. Coming together with them were large groups of poets, painters, artists and talented minds of many other trades. In the Qing Dynasty, a large number of people from Hubei Province and Guangxi Province moved into Sichuan Province, which helped to promote the communication in economy, culture, and customs. By either assimilating or learning from other people and places, Chengdu gradually developed its own opera, namely Sichuan Opera, painting, Sichuan cuisine and snacks, all of which contributed to the formation of Chengdu culture. During the Eight-year Anti-Japanese War (1937-1945), many associations, societies and celebrities moved to Chengdu, added later by another 27 colleges and Universities, thus making Chengdu a cultural center at that time. Between 1945 and 1949, with the liberation in Southwest China, many cadres came to Sichuan from all over China. After the founding of the People?ˉs Republic of China in 1949, when three important railways were under construction in Southwest China, a large number of professionals and other technicians were transferred into Chengdu to offer help.
In all, over two thousand years, Chengdu has been constantly learning and absorbing the new and the advanced culturally and intellectually. This explains why Chengdu has remained prosperous politically, culturally and economically all through the history.
Chengdu is also a city of rebellious and revolutionary tradition. In history, it was the center of a couple of peasant?ˉs uprisings and revolutions. In the early Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127), Wang Xiaobo and Li Shun, the rebel chiefs, started their uprising in Qingcheng City and soon later established their government in Chengdu. In the late Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), Zhang Xianzhong, rebel chief of the peasants uprising, also chose Chengdu as the capital city for his kingdom. In the Revolution of 1911, people in Chengdu launched an intensive campaign to protect the railways against government nationalization, and was followed by a wave of revolutions throughout Sichuan province. And it also pioneered another greater revolution in October 10, which was known to the Chinese people as the Wuchang Uprising, an important event in modern China. Mr. Sun Yat-Sen, Father of China?ˉs democratic revolution, spoke highly of Chengdu people in the revolution. After the May 4th Movement in 1919, Chengdu was among the first to send students to France for further study while working part time. Many revolutionary pioneers, including Wang Youmu, Zhao Shiyan, Wu Yuzhang, and Che Yaoxian, lived and worked in Chengdu. In December 1949, to liberate Chengdu, many soldiers sacrificed their lives to create a new world in this old city.
Chengdu has also been famous for its rich cultural heritages. Within its jurisdiction are Qionglai city, Chongzhou city and Pengzhou city, all of which are listed as Cities of Rich Cultural and Historical Heritage by the government of Sichuan province. In November 2000, Dujiangyan Irrigation System and Qingcheng Mountain (the Taoist Mountain) were ranked as Cities of the World Cultural Heritage by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
Natural & Geographic Situation

Chengdu is situated in the middle of Sichuan Province, the West Sichuan Plain.Covering an area of 12390 sq km, it is 192 KM long from east to west and 166 KM wide from south to north. Up to the year 2000, the city zone of Chengdu is 208 sq km. Chengdu is adjacent to Deyang City in the northwest, Ziyang District in the southeast, Meishan District in the south, Ya'an District in southwest and Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture in the northwest. Chengdu belongs to inland zone. It is 1,600 km away from the East China Sea and 1,090 km from the South China Sea.
Topographic Features
The geology of Chengdu has a long history and the stratigraphic exposure is relatively complete. The hypsography of Chengdu slants gradually from northwest to southeast. Characterized by hills and gullies is the western peripheral area of Sichuan Basin, which is 1,000 -3,000 above the sea level. The highest part is Shuanghe (Twin rivers) located in Dayi county with an altitude of 5,364 meters and a relative altitude of 1000 meters. At the bottom of Sichuan basin is the eastern part of Chengdu, forming the heartland of Chengdu plain. It is mainly composed of alluvion plains, mesas and part of low hills, where there the land is profound and fertile. The lowest part of the basin is only 387 meters, which located in Yutai, Jintang County. Due to the great difference of 4,977 meters on altitude between the east and the west of Chengdu, the moisture and heat distribution varies quite remarkably. As a result, in the mountainous areas of the west areas, the temperatures of air, water and land are much lower than that of the eastern plain. Moreover, even in the same mountain, the vertical distributions of different climatic zones occur. As a result, large varieties of vegetations grow in profusion, which provides favorable conditions for the development of agriculture and tourism for Chengdu.


Climate: Located in the bordering areas of the Sichuan northwest highland and Sichuan basin, Chengdu has its own climatic features. First, the eastern part of the city is different from western part in climatic zone, due to the abrupt change of the height from the east to the west. In Chengdu, generally speaking, the west is cool while the east is warm at the same time. Even in the same mountain, the foot of hill is several degrees higher in temperature than that on the top of the hill. This dramatic change in temperature is favorable for the agricultural development. Second, the winter in Chengdu is short, with a long frost-free period of over 337 days each year. The annual average temperature is around 16.4 degree. Even in the cold January, the average temperature is some 5.degrees. It rarely snows. Compared with other areas of the Changjiang River, it is 2-3 degrees higher. Third, there is not much precipitation in winter and spring while it is affluent in summer and autumn with the total precipitation volume of 1,124 centimeters. And this figure is comparatively stable, the ratio of the year with most rainfall and the year with least precipitation being 2:1. Fourth, the climatic elements of light, water and heat almost occur in the same season, which is a very favorable combination to the growth and propagation of the vegetation. Fifth, the wind speed is low. On the plain and in the mountainous areas, the normal speed of wind is around 1 to 1.5 meters per minute. The total sunshine hours average 1,042 to 1412 each year.

[ 丹巴美人谷簡介·景點  2003-10-21 15:21:40 ]

丹巴縣地理位置 位於甘孜州東部。北緯30°29′～31°29′，東經101°17′～102°12′。東與阿壩州小金縣接壤，東南和南部與康定縣交界，西與道孚縣毗鄰，北和東北面與阿壩州金川縣相連。東西最寬86﹒9公里，南北最長105﹒7公里，面積 4721平方公里，縣城海拔1800米。 人口與民族 2000年全縣總人口約7萬人，主要為藏族，另有漢族、回族、及少量彝、苗、滿等民族。 建置沿革：秦、漢為西羌領地。隋為嘉良夷地。唐置東、西喜良州，隸雅州，後被吐蕃所據。宋仍置東西嘉良州。元屬吐蕃等路宣慰使司都元帥府。明屬長河西魚通寧遠宣慰司。清康熙三十九年（1700）置革什扎安撫司和巴底安撫司。康熙四十一年（1702）置巴旺安撫司。乾隆三十九年（1774），巴旺、巴底安撫司升為宣慰使司。乾隆四十四年（1779），置章谷屯，隸懋功（今小金縣）屯美諾直隸廳。民國2年（1913）康定轄屬的魯密章谷24寨連同丹東、巴旺、巴底置丹巴縣。1935年紅軍長征過境，建立了丹巴縣蘇維埃（又名格勒得沙）政府和大桑區、巴旺、巴底、丹東、城內、連耳、聶呷、半扇門鄉蘇維埃政府。民國庫28年（1939），屬西康省第一行政督察區。1950年，屬西康省藏族自治區。1955年，屬四川省甘孜藏族自治州。1990年，全縣轄4區、15鄉、1鎮。縣治章谷鎮，距州府康定137公里，距省府成都368公里。 丹巴美人谷 大凡“美人谷”的女孩，不管身在鄉村還是走出大山，幾乎不施粉黛，不用華麗的衣飾去裝扮。她們不怕風吹，不懼日曬，艱苦的體力勞動之餘，稍加梳洗，便氣韻畢現，曲線天成。天生的冰肌玉膚似乎永遠含煙凝碧；瘦長而豐腴的體態似乎永遠婉轉有致，勞動的打磨沒有使其粗糙、變形，反而更增加了健美的必備要素。當然，她們並不拒絕盛粧包裹，天生麗質襯以時代包裝，更凸現其佳人原質。 其實又何止美人谷的女姟漂亮，在丹巴，無論您走到哪，都有可能遇上漂亮的女姟，只不過美人谷的漂亮女孩比較多而已。 丹巴美人谷在何處？怎樣去？ 美人谷位於丹巴縣城約26公里的巴底鄉，再往一條山谷上行10多公里的邛山村中，邛山村分一村、二村、三村...，由無數漂亮的藏寨相連而成，整個山谷非常漂亮，但路途非常艱辛，幾乎不能行車，完全靠步行，要行走約2小時才能到達。村中有一小學，一村約有100戶人家，上千人口。 如果您現在想在村中尋得美人，沿途的居民都會告訴您，美人都不在家，您只能看到美太婆或美小孩了？美人去了哪？ 美人谷難尋美人有以下幾個原因： 1、大部份美人長大後都被外地來的賓館、餐廳、歌舞團等邀請出山了。 2、由於當地的習俗，姑娘結婚都比較早，一般17、18歲就要談婚論嫁了，結婚之後美人由於勞作等關係，往往紅顏早逝。 不過也不用灰心，如果您的運氣好，比如在春節、選比如在春節、選美節等重大節日期間，美人都會回家過節，這時您就可以大飽眼福了。 墨爾多神山： 墨爾多山，藏族最古老的宗教——黑教的神山，嘉絨藏族文化中心，藏區四大神山之一民族英雄的象徵，海拔5105米。據《墨爾多神山誌》記載：山上共有一百零八個聖景，千余處景點。站在墨爾多山之巔，東面可望見峨眉金頂，西望可遙視衛藏岡底斯雪山，俯首可覽境內8條銀色的河流，像8條潔白的哈達，纏繞著墨爾多神山56座美麗的山巒，56座壯麗的山峰象徵著祖國56個民族的團結和友好。墨爾多神山地處藏漢結合部，因此，她本身就是藏漢民族和睦相親的象徵和見證。 墨爾多神山風景素以神奇著稱。主峰北面，有天然形成的喜馬拉雅、岡底斯、阿尼瑪卿等藏區８大神山的縮影造型，以及深不可測的遇有驚動就會風起雲湧的高山海湖；主峰東面有數十座造型逼真的天然石碉群；西面是神奇的神仙洞和自生塔。 　　墨爾多神山的神奇，被古往今來的遊人墨客所頂禮和傳頌。據《墨爾多神山誌》記載：墨爾多山上的空行母十分靈驗，因此在此修行極易修成正果。正因為此，多少個世紀以來，一直倍受中外宗教信徒的崇拜。西藏以及其他藏區僧侶們將去墨爾多山朝拜視為功德圓滿。近幾年來，大批來自祖國各地的遊方僧人到這裡的神仙洞、菩薩岩、修煉洞中參禪修行，其中還不乏國外的旅遊觀光者、科學考察和體育探險者。 天人合一－－丹巴藏寨： 丹巴山寨是嘉絨藏寨中最具特色的。尤以甲居、聶呷、革什扎和巴底鄉最為突出，幾百幢民居依山就勢、錯落有致地融于自然環境中，體現了天人合一的理念。遠遠看去，充滿靈氣的山谷中，翡翠般的青草綠樹之中，是那沉甸甸的田地和隱在密林深處的寨房，伴著時有時無的潺潺溪流，一幅富有動感的絕妙山寨畫卷隨之展示在你的眼前。 丹巴的山寨，舊稱碉樓寨房。碉樓和寨房，原本是兩類不同性質的風格建築，如今，在時光的流逝中，二者已有機地結合在一起。外形上，既有寨房的特徵，又有碉樓的形態。碉樓寨房一般為三層，也有四層的，一側還配有廂房。但不論房屋和廂房如何建造，頂層外緣都環圍著黃、黑、白三種色帶，這是嘉絨藏寨的一大特徵。 黨嶺風光： 黨嶺距縣城約60多公里，沿丹巴到道孚縣的公路行駛，沿途要經過布科村。路途非常難走，公路正在修建中，目前只有越野車可前往，約需3小時左右。 黨嶺風光據說非常優美，其中的高山海子一個連著一個，比九寨溝的海子還要漂亮，除此之外，還有溫泉等。 目前黨嶺風景區還處在開發之中，正大大力的招商引資，歡迎有實力的商家及企業前往投資。 千碉之國－－丹巴： 來到丹巴縣城，當你遊覽了大渡河上游的風光後，還應該去看看有名的丹巴碉樓。丹巴素有“千碉之國”稱譽，全縣都有碉樓分佈，且主要集中在河谷兩岸。或三五個一群，或獨立於山頭，碉與碉之間相互呼應，依山成勢，集中的地方，目力所及，數十座碉樓連綿起伏，形成蔚為壯觀的碉樓群。在眾多碉樓群落中尤以梭坡鄉和中路鄉境內碉樓群最具特點。 據考證，這裡的古碉距今已有上千年的歷史，自然在歷史長河中留下了許許多多神秘的傳說。古碉以泥土和石塊建造而成，外形美觀，墻體堅實。古碉大多與民居寨樓相依相連，也有單獨築立於平地、山谷之中的。古碉的外形，一般為高狀方柱體：有四角、五角到八角的，少數達十三角。高度一般不低於10米，多在30米左右，高者可達50到60米。從用途上看，有用作戰爭的防禦碉，傳遞情報的峰火碉；有用來求福保平安的風水碉；避邪祛祟的伏魔碉。據先輩傳說，建造古碉一事，不可人為，須得神傳仙授。造碉前還得卜卦、合氣運，否則，反受其害。當地人們也因此相信，建造古碉非同一般的修房造屋可比，免不了一番驚天動地。 北京香山一帶，至今仍有丹巴古碉的遺址。傳說，那是乾隆年間清軍出兵大小金川路經丹巴時，看見如此絕妙的建築和不可思議的防禦性能，而畫其圖帶回北京依樣建造的。 編輯　易邇

作者:   來自: 南方網

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